 Filling a gap in the area of health systems research HEARD's Health Systems project provides valuable insights through co-ordinated research in three countries: South Africa, Tanzania and Zambia. Conference on Urban Health: Urgent Action Needed The first of its kind to be held in Africa the 8th International Conference on Urban Health (ICUH) took place on 18 - 23 October in Nairobi, Kenya. Assessing the Benefits of Community Based Rehabilitation A study conducted in 2008 explored some of the implications of a NGO initiated Community Based Rehabilitation (CBR) programme.   | Newsletter Issue 2 December 2009 Message from HEARD's Director
I returned to HEARD, following my nine-month sabbatical, feeling invigorated and excited about what we will be doing over the course of the next year and into the next phase of work. The mid-term review had been completed and we have prepared our management response. The review was fair and, in parts, complimentary. Next year is the final year of the first round of funding through the unique Joint Financing Arrangement. Under this we received support from SIDA/NORAD, the Royal Netherlands Embassy, Irish Aid (the main donors) and UNAIDS and DFID. We are are taking stock of what we have achieved and are requesting continued funding. Much has been going on, a basic indicator, the number of publication shows that staff are thinking about their research, writing, submitting publications for peer review and most importantly having them accepted. This is extremely pleasing and I believe our productivity in 2009 will be very high. We make information about new publications available on the HEARD website here What is clear is the epidemic needs a nuanced response. In southern Africa it is catastrophic, with huge numbers of people being infected, falling ill and dying. It is striking that President Jacob Zuma was quoted in the newspaper as saying "we are losing the battle" against AIDS. This admission is heartening because it means we can mobilise and make a difference. The theme for the World AIDS Day this year is Universal Access and Human Rights. Universal access means making sure that people have treatment, care and prevention. While there has been progress in moving towards this there are still many millions of people who need decent health care services let alone treatment and prevalence continues to rise in some countries. We don't know what universal access for prevention would look like as it would have to bring HIV prevalence rates down. There are resource constraints that are more than financial: then include infrastructure and human resources. HEARD has been working across the region on what is needed to bring HIV/AIDS under control and how to deal with its consequences. Over the next year we will ensure that we send out regular updates and try to pick key research findings that will be of interest to the readers of HEARD News. I end by wishing you a good end of year and a chance to relax, recover and return to our desks with renewed enthusiasm. 
If you are having problems viewing this email, View it online |
